Advanced IR imaging and tracking for hypersonic intercept

This paper presents a method for image processing and IR tracking suitable for an Electro-Optical sensor in a hypersonic missile interceptor. The tracking algorithm is based on both motion and object recognition techniques providing an improved capability of target tracking even in the extreme conditions during the flight of such an interceptor. This method´s main features are: (1) SNR improvement in nonuniform noise and background, via spatial kernel filtering, (2) multitarget tracking capability, (3) data association that relies on motion and pattern recognition characteristics of the target, (4) a special method that reduces the image size in order to minimize the computation time without significant loss of accuracy, (5) robust tracking capability of small (distant) targets as well as large (close) targets. Some of the ideas presented in this paper have been successfully implemented in the Arrow ABM program, which has achieved a number of successful MRBM intercepts